Coleus: indoor flower

Coleus (Coleus) is a genus of perennial evergreen herbs and shrubs of the Lamiaceae family, living in the forests of the tropical belt of Africa, Asia, Indonesia and Australia. Many species are distinguished by bright decorative leaf color and are used in indoor culture or as garden annuals .

  • Family: Lamiaceae.
  • Origin: Tropics of the Eastern Hemisphere.
  • Rhizome: the root system is large, fibrous.
  • Stem: erect, ribbed, woody below.
  • Leaves: Opposite, elongated, toothed.
  • Fruit: Nutty.
  • Reproductive capacity: propagated by cuttings or seeds.
  • Illumination: exceptionally photophilous.
  • Watering: plentiful.
  • Content temperature: heat-loving houseplant, grown in gardens as an annual.
  • Duration of flowering: flowers do not represent decorative value.

General information and photos of coleus flowers

Coleus flower in the photo

Coleus is a large paleotropic genus, including more than 150 species of perennial herbaceous plants or shrubs from 25 to 80 cm high, with straight, branching, ribbed stems and opposite oblong leaves, pubescent on both sides, with a characteristic serrated, corrugated or fringed edge.

Coleus flowers in the photo

A distinctive feature of most species is the bright color of leaf plates, variegated, with green, white, yellow, pink, purple or red dots, veins, stripes in a variety of combinations. Usually in coleus flowers are unattractive.

They are inconspicuous, small, bluish or purple, bloom on the tops of the shoots, collected in false whorls, which in turn form a complex spike inflorescence.

When grown indoors, flowering lasts from June to September, in the tropics it continues all year round. The fruits are nut-shaped, smooth, round or flat, with small seeds, extremely rarely tied, some coleus plants do not form them at all.

In the shape of the leaf and stem, the culture resembles nettle, which is why it is often called “nettle” among the people. Its scientific name comes from the word “kleos”, which in Greek means “case” or “sheath” and reflects the structural features of the coleus flower, in which the fused filaments resemble a sheath, as if hiding a pistil.

History, birthplace of coleus and use in culture

The plant was brought to Europe in the middle of the 19th century from Indonesia, and immediately gained great popularity as an ornamental culture. A few years later, at a garden auction in England, 18 new hybrids with a variety of leaf colors were presented, which were successfully sold. In those days, the flower was highly valued, new varieties were often named after crowned persons.

Since the birthplace of coleus is warm and humid tropical forests, it does not hibernate in temperate climates, therefore it has become widespread as an ornamental leafy home or greenhouse plant. Indoor coleus is still one of the most widely grown indoor flowers today. Its numerous varieties with brightly colored leaves are not only beautiful, they are also fast growing and easy to care for.

In recent years, culture has experienced a kind of rebirth, this time as an element of landscape design. Rapid growth and ease of propagation, including cuttings, makes it possible to use it as a spectacular annual. In the photos below, coleus flowers are planted in open ground in the form of a parterre composition made up of plants of various colors. The bushes lend themselves perfectly to a haircut, due to which it is easy to maintain clarity and even texture of the pattern in such flower beds.

It is interesting to note that at home, in the tropics, the plant is used not only as an ornamental. There are several species in which edible starchy tubers form on branched roots, which are grown as a vegetable in a number of countries, like potatoes. So, on the island of Java, one of the varieties of Bloom’s coleus with black oval tubers has long been cultivated as a food product. In Sudan, the “nigro” form is bred with black tubers the size of potatoes and red pubescent leaves, in Madagascar – a variety with small, up to 2 cm long, gray or yellow-pink tubers, and in tropical Africa there are species with large, up to 20 cm, creamy tuberous roots with soft, non-fibrous flesh.

Types and varieties of indoor flower coleus

Of the numerous types of coleus in decorative floriculture, two are mainly used: the coleus of Blum and the coleus of Verschaffelt, brought from the island of Java in the middle of the 19th century. It was from them that Europeans began to get acquainted with this wonderful flower, on the basis of these species the first hybrid varieties were created, and to this day breeders in Europe and America continue to use them, working on new cultivars.

Bloom’s coleus (C. blumei) is a herbaceous perennial with tetrahedral erect stems up to 80 cm tall and ovate-oblong, rarely pubescent leaves, similar in appearance to nettle leaves, painted in various colors, from green to pink and maroon.

Coleus Verschaffelt (C. verschaffeltii) is similar to the previous one, it has larger bright leaves with a velvety surface.

Ampelous types of coleus: photos of flowers and brief characteristics

Among the coleus grown as garden and indoor flowers, there are several ampelous species, which look especially impressive in hanging baskets, balcony boxes and planters.

This is:

Coleus dwarf (C. pumilus) is lower than most other varieties, does not exceed 30 cm in height, has elongated leaves of predominantly red hues and hanging stems that allow the flower to be grown as an ampelous culture. There are several cultivars that differ in the shape of the leaves, strongly dissected and corrugated in the Firebird cultivar, wavy in the Butterfly, with a folded edge in The Chief. There are both variegated and monochromatic forms, among the latter one can note the yellow Golden Bedder and the burgundy Volcano.

Coleus Renelt (C. rehneltianus) , another ampelous species, with finely toothed dark red leaves, decorated with a bright green border.

Hybrid varieties of coleus: photo of plants and description

To date, numerous cultivars and hybrids have been created, which are sometimes isolated as a separate species. hybrid coleus (C. hybrida) . Their height varies from 30 to 80 cm, the color of the leaves can be either monophonic or multicolor, striking in a variety of patterns and brightness of colors.

The number of modern cultivars, according to some sources, approaches 200, therefore, for convenience, they are often grouped into series, of which the most famous are:

Wizard _

Superfine Rainbow (Superfine Rainbow)

Weasley (Wisley)

Fantasy .

Common varieties of coleus related to the indicated series, photos of flowers and their brief description are given above.

The Wizard series is distinguished by leaves of a wide variety of bright colors, both single-color and variegated, with a contrasting border, veins and strokes. Among the most famous cultivars are Wizard Velvet Red, whose bright red leaf plates are decorated with pink veins, yellow-green Wizard golden, red with a creamy yellow border Wizard Scarlet, solid orange Wizard Sunset, variegated green with brown and pink Wizard Coral Sunrise, etc. .d.

The Weasley series is characterized by an unusual leaf shape, in the Weasley Flame variety they look like oak leaves, painted in peach and pink tones, in the green-burgundy Weasley Tapestry they resemble pelargonium leaves.

The leaf plates of the Fantasy series are even more decorative, they are twisted, coarsely serrated, deeply divided. So, the Giant Fantasy cultivar is known with almost lobed, crimson leaves with a cream border.

The Superfine Rainbow series includes spectacular coleuses of unusual color: dark brown Dark Chocolate and almost black Black Dragon, as well as variegated varieties: Festival Dance, burgundy with red, Red Velvet, bright red with burgundy border and veins, Multicolor, with bright, green, red, yellow, burgundy spots.

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